Dehumidifiers and Moisture in The Atmosphere

Moisture and Air

Just like water, moisture can appear in the atmosphere in three states : liquid, gaseous vapor and solid. Usually, the air contains some water vapor, the contrary is very scarce. When the air reach a saturation point after being cooled, a state of condensation takes place in the form of clouds. An example of that, when the air is very cold at very high altitude, clouds are made of very small ice crystals. Therefore, precipitation can take place in the form of hail and snow.
Water states changing happen in a very simple exchanging equation. Every time water changes state it takes on or gives off heat energy. In order to transform 1 pound of ice to water by melting it, it requires about 144 BTUs (British thermal unit) of heat with a temperature of 32°. But to reach its boiling point, more heat is required to raise water temperature. An additional 36 BTUs is required for 1 pound of water. The amount of temperature needed to transform the liquid state of water into vapor is almost 7 times what is required to melt ice and which is 972 BTUs per pound of water. It’s in this process that moisture appears. When water state is changed twice, meaning ice to water, then water to vapor, the amount of heat energy per pound of water that has been accumulated in the moisture is approximately 1300 BTUs. That amount of heat energy will be released each time freezing and condensation take place and therefore will raise air temperature.

Dehumidifers Role

Technologically advanced devices have became solution to reduce many health issues and dehumidifiers are the ones related to this topic. Dehumidifiers are simply device designed to remove moisture from the air. Their role is to restraint mold and dust mites growth. They are usually used in parts of the house where humidity is found most like bathrooms and slightly wet basements.

How Does Dehumidifiers Work

Cold coils and warm coils are two essential components in the dehumidifying process. The dehumidifier suctions air over cold coils, condenses its moisture, and then passes the air over warm coils to eventually get back into the space or room where the unit is. As you may have heard, an air conditioner is also able to take moisture out by default, but only a certain amount and is not as effective as dehumidifier. Dehumidifiers are equipped with a water bucket which collects the condensed water and which should be emptied when the preset limit is reached. Some devices like Frigidaire Dehumidifiers have an option that allows the unit to drain continuously without having to empty the water tank everytime. This is done using a hose in which water is directed with gravity doing its job.
There are several models of home dehumidifiers and which can remove from 10 pints t 95 pints of water per 24 hour. The price of these units increases depending on the capacity of removing moisture. The capacity of a dehumidifier is measured by the amount of pints it’s able to remove per day at 60% relative humidity and at 27°F (80°C).